WillCful

Ah, fair enough. The problem persists even when the engine is running though, and battery voltage is reading 13+ volts?

Sorry, to answer your question I haven't changed anything electrical, except for some stuff on the 12v circuit. It's been working like this since I've had the boat. I've been trying to turn it off at night recently to save power from the inverter as our batteries are beginning to succumb to the ravages of time.

Thanks for the replies. Not sure of the inverter model, (I'll check tomorrow) by the look of it it's a fairly old and inefficient one... I'll try the trick of 'waking' it up, other items such as mobile phone etc. work just fine when plugged in to the 240v circuit. I'll try a phone and the water heater at the same time. The water heater claims to pull 20w but I think this is just when it's igniting (it's a piezoelectric spark) and the rest of the time it's just whatever power is required to run the little digital display.

Hi all, I have an lpg instant water heater supplied with power from the batteries via an inverter. The 3 core cable comes from the inverter to a 'domestic' fuse box and mcb then to a fused switch (13amp fuse I think) then to the appliance. When on the appliance works flawlessly but the challenge is getting it to come on! When switched off via the external switch it's reluctant to switch back on, I can usually get it to come on with some fiddling, throwing the switch a bunch of times, opening and shutting the water valves (!?) ... Sounds like a dodgy switch or electrical connection right?? Having traced the cabling looking for answers, I have found that the cable coming from the external switch is joined to the blue 3 core with spade connectors that all seem to be fine and (were, until I removed it to inspect) wrapped in heat shrink. There's then a short length of blue 3 core (maybe 30cm) that is connected to the long run of blue 3 core that goes back to the fuse box, again using crimped spade connectors wrapped in heat shrink, all seems good, no loose connections. Then at the back of the boat as the cable passes into the engine room where the fuse box is, the cable is spliced into another 3 core cable that disappears behind the rear bulkhead lining, I'm pretty sure it terminates back there somewhere and isn't connected to anything, maybe someone trying to future proof the addition of more 3 pin sockets? Again, the splices seem to be fine, no loose connections. My next step is to try replacing the external switch to see if this is faulty (picking a new one up in the morning). Otherwise I can't really think what would cause this intermittent functioning? Like I say once it's on, it stays on. Is it just too much sketchy wiring that should be replaced with a new run of 'unbroken' 3 core, has anyone else experienced this kind of problem when running 240v appliances via an inverter? Finally, if there was a short somewhere I'd expect the mcb to trip? Which it doesn't. Help much appreciated, thank you!

Some of the more expensive bike hand pumps have a sort of two part shrader nozzle that screws on to the valve and then screws down again to press on the pin and open the valve. To release you then unscrew to release the valve pin first with no loss of air and then unscrew again to remove the hand pump. I think I did a crap job of explaining that but if you see one it makes sense. They’re known as ‘shock pumps’ in the mtb community and usually have pressure gauges. However they’re designed for high pressure bike suspension (200+ psi) so the gauges are next to useless for low pressure accumulators. I think you can also get digital pressure readers (again, can be found on bike websites) that have this same no-loss release mechanism, and are very accurate. Some also have a button so you can release pressure with the gauge in place down to your desired setting and then remove the gauge without altering the set pressure, very handy.

I think a new thread on this might be a good idea… maybe I’ll start one… tomorrow! Yes, I am lucky to already have a large alternator installed. I’ll take a look into a regulator for it (mastervolt) and see if this would be a good option. It would be great to just have the alternators completely separate. Hopefully I can make it cheaper if it fit it myself! There’s also the Wakespeed 500, think it’s about £600 or so for the unit. I think that in terms of the off-grid, ‘alternator charging’ community is boat dwellers are in a minority or at least a unique position, all the products seem to be geared towards single smaller car/van alternator set ups charging much smaller battery banks. I already have 800 watts of solar installed but will add another 300 I think for next summer, I planned ahead! My charge controller can handle this. Any lithium battery bank should already be protected by BMS for over charging etc. The main thing to consider is damage that can occur to the alternator if the BMS suddenly cuts charging (in the event of full battery for example) as I understand it there needs to be some kind of small load or ‘dump’ for the alternator to continue supplying current (even a very small amount). Journey with Jono has a YouTube video about this where he uses an old lead acid battery with a small load on it (although I think a LA on its own would be fine as it would self discharge over time and never be ‘full’). He does this with loads of fancy Victron kit though and it seems way OTT, hopefully I can figure out something simpler. Maybe the mastervolt can handle this? I’ve emailed Renogy about potentially increasing the output of their 60a B2B unit, if they can be paralleled this would possibly be a cost effective solution as they cost about £180 each.

Sorry to dig up a slightly old thread and to back-track a bit to the discussion on alternator charging lithium batteries… I’ve got a 170amp dedicated alternator for charging the house battery and a separate, smaller one for the starter battery. Victrons BMS 12/200 seems like a great way of getting a fairly hefty regulated current into the batteries but I think it only works with Victron batts… The DC to DC chargers whether Victron or otherwise also look good but they are expensive! The largest rated 12v - 12v one is 30amps so you might need 4 of these to get a decent charging current from your alternator and that’d set you back £800. The Sterling one is better value at about £450 for the 120a model. A lot of the information is based around vehicles with just one alternator, does anyone have advice on an effective set up using 2 alternators? Is the larger alternator connected just to the house battery or to the starter as well, how is it protected in the event of the BMS stopping charging when batts are full/cold etc? The Renogy one looks quite good, mush better price. I wonder if 2 of these could be paralleled to get a higher output… https://uk.renogy.com/12v-60a-dc-to-dc-on-board-battery-charger/

That's cool, good service. They do have a gantry I think as well, so could potentially move it a bit once dock is drained? Obviously they would charge you for this...

Yeah definitely easy to arrange extra time in dry dock for curing before re-float. Ah, you haven't watched it, it rains a lot in the video! Applying epoxy outdoors is definitely a fair weather job I can't imagine it likes to get wet before full cure.

Just watched this, they did a great job and for the cost of paint and dock fees it’s a good deal too! I like the combo of the Jotun 90 AL as a primer and standard 90 over the top. I just wished the boat could have been moved slight to coat the ‘missed’ bits under the supports! Also, I’m not sure how the epoxy does getting wet like that before it’s been able to fully harden? I wonder if the Jotun 90 is surface tolerant enough that it’s not a problem…

Looking for a good ‘under sink’ water filter to fit to the cold water inlet to the tap. Anyone got something good that works that can recommend? I was thinking something along the lines of this… https://www.osmiowater.co.uk/water-filters/in-line-water-filter-systems/keep-your-existing-tap-water-filter-systems/watts-ezfitpro-ii-ultracarb-and-fluoride-water-filter-system.html Ideally this is to make it taste better! But any bacteria removal etc would be beneficial I suppose… don’t want to go full reverse osmosis and probably couldn’t afford to 😁 Thanks in advance!

I was considering this! Still waiting for a quote from them, would love to do the journey. How long do you think cruising time would be from Macclesfield? I did the inside hull last year with Jotamastic 90 (winter grade), did you brush and roller the outside or hire spray equipment?

DIY epoxy?

I see, probably pretty reasonable then!

Just a jet wash. The boat is already epoxied and I think about 8 years ago? So fingers crossed it won’t need a shot blast. Swanley have said the hire of the blast shed is 250 plus an additional movement fee for getting it there and back but the blaster bloke is an independent so the price of the job depends on him, (waiting to hear back) it could push it all to the £3k mark I suppose. I suspect epoxy in general might be a little cheaper these days as it’s more widely adopted.

Thanks @nicknorman they’ve just replied to me, they can’t do the bottom. Price seemed reasonable though? £1020 for slipway in and out and the sides epoxied. Swanley is about the same inc. slipway. But about twice as much if you get them to do the bottom. Guess it’s tricky getting the boat nice and high.

That’s great, thanks everyone. Swanley have said that they can access the bottom. But for a price! Sides is something like £16 per foot and bottom is additional £19 per foot. Northwhich dry dock is worth a look then perhaps, is that the one on the Weaver nav? Under the bridge? I’m not sure aqueduct marina can do the bottom, still waiting to hear from them. Also they don’t use Jotamastic, I’m sure the coating they use is also very good but I’ve got brand confidence in Jotun! I’ve also sent an email to wincham wharf, I’ll see what they say. Their website looks very professional…

Looking to refresh the epoxy coat on 51ft boat, sometime next year (pref as soon as possible). Had a few quotes from Swanley Bridge Marina and Aquaduct Marina. Anyone have any experience with the work from these marinas re quality of finish/efficiency etc? Price is a lot higher if you want to get the bottom done (which I do). Other suggestions welcome, ideally cheshire based but can travel. Is it a good idea to get the hull blasted even if it's already got epoxy on it, or is just jet washing fine? Thanks!

Good watch! Thanks @ditchcrawler for sharing. Only thing that concerns me... getting rear ended with those methane tanks in the boot ?

I have one of these portable ‘twin tub’ washers for sale at a very reasonable price if anyone is interested. Not sure what the forum guidelines are for selling stuff but I think you can just DM me if interested. I’m sure someone will correct me if that’s wrong...

Will do ? Will you just paint over the existing coating or go back to bare steel again?

Thanks again. Now I’ve just got to decide between blue or cream ?

Thanks @blackrose that’s great info. I’ve got the confidence to crack on and get my tank done now. Gas lockers next! I found the wee drill attachments invaluable for getting into the corners when I was doing the bilge.

15l I think. The best alternative I’ve found is Epicol SF, 4.5l from Promain for about £100. Comes in 3 colours too ? Are you certain? I didn’t know what these standards meant but googled it... this for example: https://www.rust.co.uk/understanding-surface-preparation-grades-when-painting-steel Says that sa2.5 specifically relates to blast cleaning. I used angle grinder/wire wheels to do the bilge in my boat and then epoxied it but it was with the Jotamastic 90 which Jotun tells us is more surface tolerant... How long ago did you epoxy the tank in your boat? Did you use the Tankguard DW? Hope you don’t mind me asking I’m just really keen for some real world experience. It’s fine for all the data sheets to say that it requires shot blasting but even if it lasts five or six years without you’d be made up!

Thanks Dave, grit blasting would be a bit miserable. I would be concerned about the size of the needles, not small enough to get into all the little pits...